Radio America Online News Bureau

On Monday, President Obama announced he was going after U.S. businesses with offshore accounts and try to avoid paying U.S. taxes on profits made in other countries.  So what will be the impact of Obama’s new push to collect those taxes?  Is he right when he says doing this will create more American jobs or will this trigger a corporate exodus?  And if this double taxation is so bad, why didn’t Republicans do anything about it when they had power?  We ask Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform.

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We have Friday’s top news… What is President Obama saying about retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter?  What is he promising in a replacement?  What are Senate Republicans expecting?  What is Obama saying about the fight against the swine flu?  Why is one Democratic congresswoman confirming the worst fears about Obama’s brand of health care reform?  What are auto sales numbers from April?  And what happened on Wall Street Friday?  We have the answers as we bring you the biggest stories for Friday, May 1, 2009.

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As we pass the first 100 days of the Obama administration, the Capitol Steps are checking in to see how well President Obama is getting along with his former rival and current Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.  Oh, and another Clinton drops by too.  Our guest from the Steps is Brian Ash.

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On Friday, President Obama announced the impending retirement of U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter.  Why did conservatives get blindsided by his nomination?  What is Souter’s judicial philosophy?  What kind of nominee can we expect from Obama?  What does he mean when he says a judge’s empathy is a critical quality in his search for a replacement?  What other Obama statements give us an understanding of what he sees as the role of the judicial system?  We ask former Justice Department official Barbara Comstock, who has also worked for the Senate Judiciary Committee which will oversee the upcoming confirmation hearings.

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Why should we not be worried that the current swine flu outbreak could kill tens of millions like a different epidemic did in 1918?  Why should the credit for readily available flu medication go to the private pharmaceutical industry rather than the federal government?  What should we make of Democrats openly desiring to destroy the private health insurance industry?  And why do Democrats want to short circuit Congressional debate?  We ask Grace-Marie Turner, president of the Galen Institute.

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Why does Michigan Rep. Thaddeus McCotter call President Obama’s decision to have Chrysler enter Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection ‘cruel’ and ‘forced’?  What would he have done differently?  What is his reaction to President Obama scolding bondholders who didn’t toe the government line?  How about the mandatory merger with Fiat?  We get answers to those questions and more in our conversation with Rep. McCotter.

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We have Thursday’s top news… What is the Obama plan for keeping Chrysler afloat?  Who does he blame for not being part of the government plan for Chrysler?  What fate awaits Chrysler CEO Robert Nardelli?  How is this news being received in Detroit?  What action is Congress taking towards the credit card industry?  Why is Vice President Biden creating headaches for the White House on the swine flu scare?  What happened on Wall Street Thursday?  We have the answers as we bring you the biggest stories for Thursday, April 30, 2009.

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On Thursday, President Obama announced Chrysler would be merging with Fiat and going through a 60-day Chapter 11 bankruptcy process.  Will the bankruptcy court rubber stamp Obama’s plan or exercise some independence?  Why do some see this as a sweetheart deal for labor unions?  What is the real story behind Obama’s slamming of bondholders and hedge fund managers who are not going along with his plan?  And why is the merger with Fiat more disturbing than it is reassuring?  We ask John Berlau, director of the Center for Investors and Entrepreneurs at the Competitive Enterprise Institute.

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What grade should President Obama get for his first 100 days in office?  What grade should the media get for their conduct since Obama came to the White House?  Will Sen. Arlen Specter look back at his party switch as the move that saved his political career, or is this a crass political move that his constituents will reject?  Is the government handling the swine flu threat well or turning a minor outbreak into full-blown hysteria?  And how close are Taliban extremists to toppling the Pakistani government?  We ask John Gizzi, political editor at Human Events.

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One of the next major items on President Obama’s agenda is to pass health care reform legislation.  But while it sounds good to some that the government will intervene and make health care more affordable, what will be the real outcome?  Why will rationing have to take place if health care costs are really to be reduced?  What patients will simply be told their medicine or surgery won’t happen because it’s not ‘cost effective’?  How is this already happening in countries with government-run care?  Why will you still get sucked into the government system even if you stay with private insurance?  Why are Democrats not even planning to hold debate on this major legislation?  What is the Republican alternative?  We ask Arizona Rep. John Shadegg, a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

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